The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School

Inspection Report The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School

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125200 Unique Reference Number Surrey Local Authority 296539 Inspection number 6 °7 December 2006 Inspection dates Vanessa Ward Reporting inspector

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Middlemarch School address Junior Type of school Roke Lane, Witley Voluntary aided School category Godalming GU8 5PB 7 °11 Age range of pupils 01428 683071 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01428 685412 Fax number 334 Number on roll (school) Dr David Pollard Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Susan Sayers Headteacher 17 March 2003 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 296539 6 °7 December 2006 7°11 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied.

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by three Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

The Chandler CE Junior school is larger than average. Pupils come from a wide range of social backgrounds. A very large majority of the pupils are White British. Other pupils come from a range of ethnic backgrounds and all speak English as their first language. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities is slightly above average. Far fewer pupils than usual are entitled to free school meals. There has been significant turnover of staff in the past two years. A major building project is currently in progress.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006

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Grade: 2

The Chandler Church of England Junior School is a good school. It provides a good quality of education and has several outstanding features. The pupils' personal development and well-being are outstanding because of the excellent care, guidance and support that the school provides. Parents are very appreciative of all that the school does. One parent reflected the views of many in saying 'The school is wonderful and caring. The atmosphere is like that of a big family'. The pupils greatly enjoy being in school and say that 'our teachers are kind and help us'. The leadership and management of the school are good. The headteacher's clear vision of how to move the school forward is shared very effectively. She fosters strong support among staff and governors to bring about school improvement. The school's self-evaluation is very well-founded, incisive and accurate. All levels of management work very effectively together to contribute to, monitor and evaluate school

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Grade: 2

improvement. This has led to significant improvements since the previous inspection, and indicates that the school has outstanding capacity to improve further. The school successfully promotes both the pupils' academic development and their well-being, through excellent links with other agencies. Good teaching helps pupils to enjoy learning and promotes their good achievement. The excellent support provided for pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities enables them to make outstanding progress from their starting points. Throughout the school, pupils make good progress and, by the end of Year 6, standards in English, mathematics and science are well above average, and are sometimes even higher in mathematics and science. An initiative to raise standards in writing has led to significant improvement, but a recent dip in test results indicates that more work needs to be done. The pupils behave extremely well and show very positive attitudes to learning. Through

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Grade: 2

participation in a wide range of sporting activities and daily opportunities to eat healthily, the pupils gain excellent knowledge about healthy lifestyles. Their comprehensive understanding of how to keep safe is constantly increasing through aspects of the school's outstanding curriculum. The intensive focus on teaching basic skills and the provision of excellent opportunities, such as taking part in a business enterprise scheme, help them to prepare very well for life beyond school. Pupils make an outstanding contribution to both the school and local community through the school's systems for peer mediators, playground buddies and the Help in the Community project. Pupils' personal development is enriched by a strong focus on their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Raise standards in writing to match those attained in mathematics and science. 2 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006

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Grade: 2

The pupils' achievement is good. The children enter the school with attainment that is above average. Good teaching enables them to make good progress. By the end of Year 6, standards in English, mathematics and science are well above average. The school identifies where standards could be higher and introduces changes aimed at improving them. Examples include successful initiatives to raise boys' attainment in English and girls' standards in mathematics. A recent fall in writing standards has prompted the school to increase its focus on improving writing. Analysis of data indicates that all groups of pupils make good progress and those with learning difficulties and disabilities often achieve very well. However the school is not complacent, and staff are currently tracking individual pupil's performance closely and providing additional support, in their drive to accelerate progress.

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Grade: 1

Pupils respond very positively to the school's excellent promotion of healthy eating. They can explain clearly what constitutes a healthy lifestyle and enjoy eating fruit and vegetables in school. They take part very enthusiastically in the many opportunities the school provides to enjoy sport and take exercise. They understand very well how to keep safe and free from harm in many different situations. Attendance is above average and reflects the pupils' enjoyment of school. They take on various roles within school, acting as peer mediators, for instance, sitting on the school council or helping each other as 'buddies'. Skills which they will need for life beyond school are developing extremely well through opportunities to design, produce, market and sell products. The pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding. They care for and value each other and have a strong sense of right and wrong. Behaviour is

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Grade: 1

frequently exemplary, and pupils have very positive attitudes. Their social skills develop very well through paired and team work. They gain a good understanding of different cultures and traditions and the school is extending this work.

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Grade: 2

The good quality of teaching and learning enables the pupils to make good progress. Well planned lessons, that provide tasks which build on what pupils already know and can do, help to provide suitable challenge. Teachers share the purpose of the lesson with their pupils, and this helps them to know what they are expected to learn and to reflect on their progress at the end of the lesson. The pace of lessons is often brisk, and this increases the rate of learning. On the occasions when the pace slows, pupils are not as productive as they could be. Similarly, there is variation in the extent to 3 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006 which teachers capture pupils' interest at the start of lessons. In some lessons, resources are used very well to stimulate interest. Pupils writing instructions for sandwich-making were greatly motivated by a sequence of photographs showing the process displayed

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Grade: 2

on an interactive whiteboard. Support staff work well with small groups of pupils, particularly assisting those with learning difficulties and disabilities.

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Grade: 1

The curriculum is outstanding. It has benefited from a comprehensive review to improve its breadth and balance and increase pupils' enjoyment of learning. It provides much to interest and motivate the pupils. They speak enthusiastically about 'special weeks', when the focus has been on science or citizenship. Their enjoyment is greatly increased through work in art, French and information and communication technology (ICT). The use of basic skills is used well across a range of subjects, for example, to develop good quality writing through work in history or geography. Pupils of all abilities are enabled to enjoy a full curriculum. Excellent links with other institutions are used very effectively to enrich and develop the curriculum. There is a good range of well-attended extra curricular activities. Pupils' personal development is greatly enhanced through the school's focus on health and safety, and through teaching about relationships and

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Grade: 1

the potentially damaging effects of some drugs.

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Grade: 1

The care, guidance and support provided for pupils are all outstanding and are at the heart of the work of the school. The adults in the school are sensitive to every child's personal and academic needs. Relationships with parents are very positive, and they wholeheartedly support the care which the school provides for pupils. As one parent commented, 'Staff go a long way to treat children as individuals and make them feel safe and secure'. The care and support provided for pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities is a strength of the school. Excellent links with outside agencies support all groups of pupils. Tracking arrangements for assessing pupils' progress are excellent and the pupils are very clear about what they are learning, about the progress they have made and what they need to do to improve. There is very rigorous monitoring of the pupils' progress, including keeping track of their personal development. Procedures for ensuring pupils'

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Grade: 1

safety and security, and keeping them safe from harm, are very comprehensive and effective. Pupils feel that any incidents involving inappropriate behaviour towards each other are resolved effectively. 4 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006

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Grade: 2

The good leadership and management provided by the headteacher, staff and governors contribute significantly to the good progress made by the pupils. Particular features of the excellent leadership of the headteacher are her very clear understanding of the school's strengths and weaknesses, and of the actions necessary to bring about improvement. She has created a strong sense of teamwork. The school is very vigilant in monitoring standards and takes action to bring about improvement. Raised standards in mathematics and improvements to the curriculum are examples of very successful intervention. The school is aware that standards in writing need to be raised and is working determinedly to achieve this. Similarly, it is working to remove inconsistencies in teaching as part of its drive to raise standards. Governors fulfil their statutory responsibilities and carry out their roles effectively. They are well informed about the school's priorities and offer a good balance of support

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Grade: 2

and challenge. Governors who have recently assumed new roles are rapidly increasing their understanding of their new responsibilities. 5 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006 .

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Grade: 2

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006

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Inspection judgements

School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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Overall effectiveness

How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 1 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 1 The capacity to make any necessary improvements Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

2 How well do learners achieve? 2 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 1 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The behaviour of learners 2 The attendance of learners 1 How well learners enjoy their education 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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and interests of learners?

1 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average to below average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low. 7 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006

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and supporting all learners?

How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can How effectively and efficiently resources, including staff, are deployed to achieve value for money The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities Yes Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? No Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? 8 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you for the friendly way you welcomed us to your school for the recent inspection. A special thank you goes to those of you who met with us to let us know your views. We enjoyed talking to you and observing you in lessons. You gave us lots of helpful information. Many of you told us how much you enjoy school and feel that you are doing well. We agree. Yours is a good school and your headteacher, teachers and the other adults work very hard to make sure you are safe, well looked after and able to do your best. You behave very well. It is good that you help one another through your peer mediator and buddy systems, and through your school council. We were pleased to talk to you about how you keep healthy and to hear how 'Horace the Hedgehog' encourages you in this. Your teachers give you lots of interesting things to do and this helps you to enjoy school. You do well in national tests, particularly in mathematics and science. Your teachers have worked

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

very hard to help you to make your written work more interesting. We have asked them to carry on with this so that you do as well in English as you do in mathematics and science. Your headteacher, teachers and governors are very good at finding ways to make your school even better. They have lots of exciting plans for when your new building is finished. We hope that you will continue to do your best and help your teachers as much as you can. Yours sincerely Vanessa Ward Lead Inspector 9 Inspection Report: The Chandler CofE Aided Junior School, 6 °7 December 2006

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